Rutgers University researchers are studying the viability of growing ethnic specialty crops in greenhouses and hoop houses for local and regional sales… “At Rutgers we have a specialty crop research group,” said Albert Ayeni (Department of Plant Biology and Pathology), who is ethnic crop research specialist. “We have been funded for about $2 million by the USDA. Our research group, led by Dr. Ramu Govindasamy, has documented the rapidly increasing population of Asians (Chinese and Asian Indians) and Hispanics (Mexicans and Puerto Ricans) on the U.S. East Coast. As of 2010 the population of these ethnic groups stood at about 6 million people.”